American Idol Top 36, Group 3

This was a really good night for the contestants. So many good vocals that I think a majority of the Wild Card show will be filled with people from this group. Here are my thoughts with my predictions.

Tonight’s festivities began with 22-year-old Von Smith’s rendition of “The Better Part of Me” by Marvin Gaye. He definitely has a good voice and marketable looks. I wouldn’t be surprised if he makes it through to the next round—he’s really very good and this was a breakout moment for him. If this were one of the earlier weeks I’d have said he’d be one of the three to go to the finals, but I’m hoping he’ll at least be a Wild Card.

Taylor Vaifanua neither looks nor sounds like she’s 17 years old. I found her walking around while she sang “If I Ain’t Got You” by Alicia Keyes a little distracting. It was like she had to punctuate every word with a step. I thought her vocals were ok, but I don’t think the song was a good choice because it wasn’t anything that could show any personality. I don’t think she’ll be going any farther.

Wow, Alex Wagner-Trugman really tried to liven up a slow swing song “I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues,” by Elton John, in all the wrong ways. It was kind of fun to see and I think his personality showed through, but I didn't like the grunting and growling. I’d like to see him go farther because he’s funny but I think that this group of capable contestants probably just killed any chance of him progressing.

In choosing “The Winner Takes It All” by Abba, I think Arianna Afsar took a song that was too mature for her and then added too many vocal improvisations to try to liven it up. In doing so it looked more like she was singing it in a school play than in a national professional singer competition. I don’t think she’s ready to go any farther.

Ju'Not Joyner’s sensitive rendition of “Hey There Delilah” by Plain White T’s really impressed me. I like how he slowed it down into a very nice and soulful ballad. I like how he personalized it in his own style the way the David Cook would take songs in the rocker direction. I really liked it and I hope that we’ll see him in either the top 12 or having another chance as a Wild Card.

Tracy Chapman’s “Give Me One Reason” is one of my favorite songs so I was interested to see what Kristen McNamara would do with this slower blues. To me, this song is mostly about feeling a vibe as it starts out slow and then gradually builds more power before the song ends. On a show like American Idol, I don’t think the 2 minute song length limit gives a performer enough time to make an impact with a song like this. The melody itself isn’t all that difficult so she had to liven it up quite a bit to make it impressive enough for the show. I’m not sure if the things she did to it were enough to make it all that memorable. I liked her in the audition weeks, but I’m thinking if she doesn’t make it to the Wild Card round, this is probably the end of the line for her.

The problem with Nathaniel Marshall’s presentation of “I Would Do Anything For Love” was that it was so much like Meatloaf’s version that I couldn’t help but compare his vocals to the original and I don’t think he was anywhere near as good. He’s also one of those contestants like Tatiana Del Toro… memorable for all the wrong reasons. I suppose that there may be some weird 80s throwback niche that really digs him and tries to vote him through, but I’m guessing that this is the end of the road for him.

At the end of Hollywood week, Joanna Pacitti was told that she had made it through to the finals, but the day after that episode aired, Fox announced that Joanna wasn’t eligible to continue in the competitions, presumably because of her record deals. So they brought back eliminated Felicia Barton in to take her place. I really like Felicia’s comeback story, but “No One,” by Alicia Keyes, really didn’t do anything for me. She had very good vocals, but the song seemed to be ramping up the whole time and never really got interesting. Wild Card is probably the most we can hope for her right now which if she ended up making it past that and then far into the final 12, then THAT would be an incredible underdog story.

I expected Scott MacIntyre to be saved to be the last performer tonight because of his inspirational story. His performance of “Mandolin Rain” by Bruce Hornsby really seemed to fit in with the style of music that I’d expect from him—although he sounded a little more pitchy and awkward than I expected him to. I wish that he could have had a keyboard in front of him because I’m sure he would have been indisputably the best of the night. Either way, I expect him to be one of the 3 that goes right into the top 12 tomorrow.

Kendall Beard’s version of “This One’s For The Girls” by Martina McBride was too much like the original song. I know that if I wanted to hear it again, I could just go buy the single. I’d have no reason to buy her music. I’m thinking that unless all the country folk vote her in just because she’s country, this will be the end of the road for her too.

It’s probably Jorge Nuñez’s Latin heritage that makes me think this, but I often think of Jon Secada when I hear him sing. Which isn’t a bad thing because I really like Jon Secada. He did a really good job singing “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down” by Elton John—accent and all. I expect him to make it through to the next round.

I have to admit something here, contemporary R&B really isn’t my kind of music, but it has populated so many of the previous seasons of American Idol so I’m sure Lil Rounds singing “Be Without You” by Mary J. Blige will be plenty to get her through to the top 12. She is very likable and talented, so don’t think I’m saying she wouldn’t deserve it, but If I was basing my pick for the winner on whose albums I’d buy, I’m afraid I wouldn’t be voting for her.

So my three picks to move through to the final 12 are Von Smith, Scott MacIntyre and Lil Rounds with Ju'Not Joyner, Felicia Barton and Jorge Nuñez as the Wild Cards for next week.